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Scatter
Scatter is a 1989 comedy-horror film directed by Owen Emerson starring Jennifer Jason Leigh and Cliff DeYoung. The film involves an animal doctor and her husband getting trapped in a boarding house after a group of rats become exposed to a mutagen that turns them murderous, and only the doctor could stop them. Plot The film begins with a lonely old man, Pendleton, tending to a group of pigeons and mice he rescued. He is frequently bothered by his landlord since he hasn't paid his rent. The landlord breaks into Pendleton's compound on the roof, causing him to drop a chemical he was working on. A fight ensues with Pendleton being dealt a fatal blow to the back of the head. Some of Pendleton's rats come into contact with the chemical and become ravenous, tackling and devouring the landlord. It then goes to Stephanie Higgins, an animal doctor who's been laid off due to her means of operating. She along with her husband Gunther move to the former's childhood home in Exeter, New Hampshire, but are disappointed to learn that its been converted into a boarding house. The two are given a mixed reception from the tenants, the more negative coming from Ronald and Enid Dickson, a bigoted couple with the former running for senator, along with the former's accountants Jerv and Preston and his publicists Theo and Raymond. They get more positive reception from Daphne, a spiritualist, Cosmo, a man who seeks to maintain order, Ned, an eccentric alien fanatic, Howard, a perverted but weak exterminator and Boris and Hanneke, a struggling couple that sympathize with the two. The landlord of the building, Howard, offers them a tour, where they learn of a number of rodent infestations. Howard is seen clearing a crawlspace of rats. In the sewer, the ravenous rats discover a pack of sewer rats and attack them, mutating them after biting them. One of the rats crawls to the surface, witnessing an argument between Ronald and his opponent Hubert. The rats crawl into his car and maul him to death, the loss of control causing him to crash into an oncoming tanker truck. The news of the death becomes known the next day and it costs Ronald his spot in the senate race since the death is pinned on him. The rats attack a flock of pigeons and spread their ravenousness to them. Cast *Jennifer Jason Leigh: Stephanie Higgins *Christopher Lee: Pendelton *Cliff DeYoung: Gunther Higgins *David Ogden Stiers: Ronald Dickson *Melinda Dillon: Enid Dickson *Susan Dey: Daphne *Tim Choate: Cosmo *Stuart Charno: Ned *Tom Noonan: Howard *Neith Hunter: Autumn *Peter Boyle: Boris *Marg Helgenberger: Hanneke *Elizabeth Berkley: Anita *Kelly Wolf: Mercury *Tiffani Thiessen: Britney *Marnette Patterson: Selma *Allison Mack: Jupiter *I.M. Hobson: Jerv *Max Wright: Preston *Moses Gunn: Theo *Soon-Tek Oh: Raymond Production Principal filming took place throughout Rockingham County in New Hampshire. Reception The film received mixed to favorable reviews, garnering a 57% on Rotten Tomatoes. The film received little promotion outside of advertisements placed throughout United Artists theaters, but it was able to break even at the box office.